User blog:Nf2752/New Beginnings
Hey Everyone, I just thought I would give this blog thing a try. This is the first chapter of my currently untitled novel that involves characters and locations from the galaxy. This particular chapter begins around the planet of before shifting to the capital planet of Silei. Please feel free to rip it to shreds because that is certainly the most helpful. Thanks! Aboard the Star Gazer – Ma’Paler - High Orbit ' '''The lengthy silver underside of the Arris Class Capital Cruiser reflected the shimmering blue of the planet below. The topside was covered in the bright yellow light of the far away star. A prim and proper woman in a well pleated, bright white uniform sat impatiently in a large black leather seat. She always hated having to do patrols. They were so boring. Nothing ever happened. Especially here. The Ma’Palan’s were just being paranoid. They’re in the middle of a sector for goodness sake. It made no sense, but whatever. She wasn’t part of command and it was their decision, not hers. She looked back out at the stars. She looked over at a timepiece embedded in the wall. It was 20.32; they were about three quarters of the way through orbit. It was a good time to do rounds; at least it was something to do. She stood from her chair and turned to leave. The rear doors slid open quickly and she walked passed. She went down to the barracks where most of the sailors were. She didn’t require many of them to be on duty since not much happened here. Platoons MP4 & 7 were down here. That meant about eighty sailors. It was really irrelevant, but there really wasn’t much else to think about. Suddenly, the ship was rocked. Alarms started sounding. She struggled to gain support. She fell to the floor. Most of sailors did as well. She stood quickly. She commed the bridge. “What’s going on?!” She screamed into her wrist comm. “Admiral, we’re under attack!” A male voice responded. “By whom?” “We’re not sure, sir. We can’t pin them down. It appears to be…” there were another series of shakes, “several small fighters.” “Send all men to their stations. Prepare for battle.” The ship rocked again. She ran as fast as she could, the pulse pounding in her head. Every few steps the ship rocked. A few more and she was thrown to the ground. She heard muffled screams. She flinched. She could only imagine what was happening. Merciless vacuums ripping people from the ship. Massive chucks of metal wrenching limbs off people. She grabbed the door frame to the bridge as it shook again. The door opened. She rushed in. “Update me.” “Fifteen fighters initiated the attack. We’ve shot down seven. The port side has taken significant damage. Engines 3, 7 and 9 have stopped functioning. The port side batteries have been destroyed. Corridors 247, 231, and 211 have been sealed. Red squadron has been totally destroyed, and blue squad is leaving the hangar. What are your orders?” “Lieutenant Rebi tell all fighters to pursue. Evacuate the port side. Put out distress code 1-21, and move the ''Star Gazer ''away from orbit.” More alarms sounded. Her mind started racing. Where were they coming from? Who were they? Why here? An extraordinary white flash and supersonic blast split through her thoughts. All she could feel was the sudden pull of vacuum. Four agonizing seconds later her vision returned. It was very blurry. She tried to examine the damage. Suddenly, everything became clear. The bridge was bathed in red light. Her head was pounding, everything seemed difficult. She looked for anyone. Someone was horribly bisected by the emergency air lock. Something touched her leg. She retracted. She rolled back, and grabbed her blaster. She pointed it back. She was surprised to see her Lieutenant at the other end. “Sir, we need to get out of here.” Her point was made as a chunk of the roof collapsed. She only nodded. They hurried as fast as their damaged legs could allow toward the door, more of the ceiling fell. The entire ship rocked. Blaster blots collided with the hull. They kept running. The escape pods shouldn’t have been far. The port side ones were all gone. They headed for the others. She couldn’t think. She only knew that her lieutenant’s hand was in hers. Beams would fall and block their path. They ran down several corridors. Finally, they reached the starboard ones. Only one was left. They ran for it. She frantically tapped the keys. At first it wouldn’t open. After about three tries it opened. They scrambled in and attempted launching the pod. The engines fired. They felt the pod leave the ship. Then they felt only pure heat and nothingness. '''Aboard the ''Domineering ''– Beyond Ma’Paler Gravity Well '' The bulkhead doors released from the windows. The Ma’Palan system was eerie and quiet. There were very few ships coming or going. “Captain, are you sure this is the correct system?” Vice Admiral Niath was inquisitive. A code 1-21 was very serious, and this system seemed strangely very calm. They received the signal less than an hour ago. “Yes sir, the signal came from the Star Gazer, which was on duty in Ma’Paler’s orbit.” It came from Captain Usti, the navigator. “Then tell me something Captain, where is the Star Gazer?” His voice became calm and almost soothing. Presumably, the captain guessed what was coming. The Captain straightened and exhaled. “Sir, preliminary scans do not show the Star Gazer or what would be its ion trail if it left the system.” “Then…FIND IT.” Niath turned to stare down the Captain. He returned his gaze , but immediately turned back, “Captain has there always been a debris field in this system?” Niath sounded truly perplexed. He only was able to point aimlessly. “Uh…wha…oh that debris field. Um…sir that field is not listed on any of the maps. It…it is possible that the maps have not been updated…” “Captain, you know as well as I that that is not true. Helmsman, move the ship toward the debris. Captain, begin scanning for life forms.” Niath walked back to the navigation tables and boards where he spent most of his time. His heavy hands landed hard on the metal edge of the table. He was almost sure he knew what had happened to the Star Gazer. His fears were confirmed when a Commander arrived with a message. “Sir, we have located…what remains of the Star Gazer,” “Let me guess…the debris field.” “Yes sir. There were no escape pods and no life forms. More than likely it was a reactor malfunction.” “That doesn’t explain the distress signal, Commander.” His tone became scornful. “Well…sir…um…well…I suppose it doesn’t, but we…have no other explanation.” “Commander, what is a code 1-21?” “Sir?” “What is the code, Commander?” He added an extra touch of frigidness to his words. The Commander shuddered slightly. “Code 1-21, sir, is a distress signal that states immediate assistance is needed, usually only used for enemy attacks.” “Exactly, now why would a perfectly capable Rear Admiral send out the wrong signal?” He paused for a response, but didn’t obtain one. “That’s correct Commander, she wouldn’t. Now, find me a better answer.” The Commander nodded quickly and walked away with the little bit of dignity he retained. Several minutes passed by agonizingly before Niath was given his answer. It was not one he was happy to hear. Pieces of fighters had been found within the debris. They were not ICS fighters, but Loracni Pirate fighters, which meant the Empire. He wasn’t sure where to go from here. This sort of thing rarely happened. They give training for this stuff, but it was nothing like when it actually happened. He shook his head, and tapped a series of digits on the comm table nearby. It took a long time for any answer to arrive. '''Senate Chamber – Agrysis, Silei Her secretary looked down as the holoprojector began flashing blue. Quietly, she depressed a key and a small figure appeared. “Vice Admiral Niath,” he was well known amongst the Senate “can this not wait? This is not the best moment.” The Senate was currently embroiled in a complicated discussion on whether or not to approve an increase in naval spending. “I’m sorry ma’am, but I believe that she needs to hear what I have to say.” The secretary simply nodded. She knew there was no changing his mind. He had shown that multiple times. She turned to the President, who was standing beside her. “Admiral Niath needs to speak with you. He said he has something you need to hear.” The President sighed very heavily, but nodded approval. She stopped the bickering and prepared the Senators for the transmission. “I regrettably inform the Senate that the protectionary vessel orbiting Ma’Paler has been destroyed.” He lowered his head as his finished. Her secretary watched as the president’s eyes turned a very frigid shade of blue. “Niath, you had me interrupt the Senate for this? You can handle this can’t…” “I sorry, but I was not finished. The ship, the Star Gazer, was destroyed by a group of Imperial pirates.” A myriad of soft gasps popped up around the chamber. There were, however, several senators who did nothing. “Now you all see. This was exactly what I was saying. We need to protect ourselves. This clearly shows that we are vulnerable!” Senator Ach, the Ma’Palan senator, shouted across the chamber. “Senator Ach has a point, but the government of the Empire is not necessarily to blame,” continued Senator Dereima. The topic of military spending dropped away, and protection filled its spot. The debate did not very readily take form. Only vague details shaped, but it would all be saved for a later day. Category:Blog posts